Stage 6 Agriculture Stage 6 Agriculture syllabus support syllabus support

workshopworkshopDavid RandallDavid Randall

Richmond High SchoolRichmond High School

on behalf of on behalf of Technology Unit Curriculum K-12 DirectorateTechnology Unit Curriculum K-12 Directorate

Aims of the workshopAims of the workshop

o become familiar with the amended Stage 6 Agriculture syllabus

o develop effective programming using a range of planning tools

o utilise teaching strategies to improve student learning outcomes

o become familiar with the Board of Studies marking guidelines for Stage 6 Agriculture.

Housekeeping mattersHousekeeping matters

o Venueo Sign on sheetso Workshop materials o Agendao Evaluations

Institute of Teachers standardsInstitute of Teachers standards

1.2.1 Apply and use knowledge of the content/discipline(s) through effective, content-rich, teaching activities and programs relevant to the stage.

2.2.3 Apply practical and theoretical knowledge and understanding of the different approaches to learning to enhance student outcomes.

6.2.4 Work productively and openly with colleagues in reviewing teaching strategies and refining professional knowledge and practice.

MYPL@DETMYPL@DET

IntroductionsIntroductions

•Name•Where you are from – school/system.•Area of agricultural interest.

Session 1Session 1

Overview of changes to the syllabus, Overview of changes to the syllabus, examination specifications examination specifications and assessment guidelinesand assessment guidelines

Why did the syllabus change?Why did the syllabus change?A discussion paper was developed by the Board of Studies in August 2008.The paper considered concerns raised with the Board about HSC student stress and workload, as well as some different practices between HSC exams and assessments in different courses.

In Agriculture these proposed changes included:

ochanges to exam specifications including the introduction of objective response questionsoremoval of the optional research project from the courseochanges in assessment guidelines

Discussion paperDiscussion paperAgriculture teachers around the state responded to the discussion paper, and there was also meeting at the Board with the NSWAAT and Board of Studies senior management.

The main points discussed were:oinability of the 1999 syllabus to support objective response (multiple choice) questionsodesire of some agriculture teachers to retain the optional research projectoproblems interpreting the 1999 syllabus othe mark balance between electives and research.

An agreement was made to update the syllabus to allow the new exam specifications to be implemented.

Amendment, revision or re-write?Amendment, revision or re-write?

NSWAAT was asked to nominate a writing team to amend the syllabus.

The writing team’s aims were: omake a clear distinction between the content in the Preliminary and HSCoprovide guidance to the depth of study in each dot pointouse a format closer to that of other subjectsoprovide electives which projected the subject into the 21st century. oallow the new exam specifications to be implementedoRemove overlap

Syllabus changesSyllabus changesChange in formatChange in format

Students learn about: Students learn to:

Plant production systems• process of growth and

development in plants

• processes of respiration, photosynthesis, net assimilation rate, water and nutrient uptake on the effects of plant growth

•outline the phases of growth of one agricultural monocotyledon or dicotyledon used in agriculture

•describe the effect on plant growth of the processes of respiration, photosynthesis, net assimilation rate, water and nutrient uptake

Change in weightings in the HSC courseChange in weightings in the HSC course

Removal of the optional research project created an imbalance between the core and elective.

The weightings in the HSC course have been altered to strengthen the core and increase the depth of study in ONE elective.

Core 80% Plant/Animal production 60%Farm product study 20%Elective 20%

Detail in Detail in learn tolearn to dot points dot pointsMore detail on the required depth of study. Use of the terms including and such as. Including means to study all of the items listed.

odescribe chemical characteristics of a soil including soil pH, ion exchange capacity, soil carbon and nutrient status

Such as gives an indication of the types of items you could study, these are a guide only, and you are free to investigate other items.

odiscuss one ethical issue relevant to an animal production system such as mulesing, live export, battery egg production, use of farrowing crates

Use of verbs to indicate the required depth of learningUse of verbs to indicate the required depth of learning

Verbs from the Board of Studies’ key words glossary are used to indicate the depth of study required. These key words may also be used to frame questions from the dot points in the HSC, for example: oidentify the factors that limit fertility of farm animals including genetics, environment, pests and diseases, management and nutrition ooutline the role of objective measurement and heritability on the breeding programs of farms, using at least one specific industry program as an example odescribe the relationship between the ruminant and rumen microbesoexplain how plant breeding is used to develop new plant varieties to improve product quality, yield and environmental adaptationoevaluate an IPM program, naming the target organism and the plant host

Clearer distinction between the depth of study Clearer distinction between the depth of study required in the Preliminary and HSC coursesrequired in the Preliminary and HSC coursesThe writing team attempted to identify processes and basic biological functions in the Preliminary course, and study the manipulation of these through management in the HSC course.

Some examples of these distinctions are:oReproductionoNutritionoPest managementoSoil and resourcesoPlant v’s crop growthoExperimental design and statistics

Minor changes to outcomesMinor changes to outcomes

Depth in the HSC core has been strengthened by Depth in the HSC core has been strengthened by moving some dot points from the old electives.moving some dot points from the old electives.

With the reduction of the electives from 30% to 20%, some content was moved from the old electives to the core.

An example of this is: ooutline the effects of plant hormones including auxins, gibberellins, cytokinins, ethylene and abscisic acid

Removal of the optional research projectRemoval of the optional research project

In the 2008 discussion papers the role of externally produced work was investigated.

The research project has declined in popularity, and now has very few candidates at the HSC attempting it.

New electivesNew electivesAgri-food, Fibre and Fuel Technologies

Climate Challenge

Farming for the 21st Century oThe electives were developed so they are an extension of the core syllabus.oThey indicate three areas of future directions in Australian agriculture.oOnly one elective to be studied.oClear distinction between core and elective content.oElective studied at greater depth up from 15% to 20%.

HSC exam specificationsHSC exam specificationsThe examination will consist of a written paper worth 100 marks. Time allowed: 3 hours plus 5 minutes reading time. The paper will consist of two sections.

Section I – Core (80 marks) This section will consist of two parts. Across this section there will be approximately 50 marks based on the Plant/Animal production core and 30 marks based on the Farm product study core.

Part A (20 marks) There will be objective response questions to the value of 20 marks. Part B (60 marks) There will be approximately seven short-answer questions. Questions may contain parts. There will be approximately fifteen items in total. At least three items will be worth from 6 to 8 marks. Section II – Electives (20 marks) There will be two questions for each of the three electives. Candidates will be required to answer both questions on the elective they have studied. The first question on each elective will be worth 8 marks and may contain parts. The second question on each elective will be an extended response worth 12 marks with an expected length of response of around three and a half pages of an examination writing booklet (approximately 500 words).

Summary of changesSummary of changeso 20 marks from objective response (multiple choice) questions.o 60 marks from questions like the current questions 1 to 5.

These will be in approximately 7 questions which may be made up of parts.

o At least 3 items of high mark value which may be questions which ask students to asses, justify or evaluate (6 to 8 marks each).

o Only 1 extended response question in the paper contained in the elective.

o No internal choice in the core of the paper. This is consistent with other HSC exam changes and is best practice in educational measurement.

Assessment guidelinesAssessment guidelines

There are changes in the assessment guidelines

The main points to note are:oTo “focus’ assessment on the main concepts and skills of the course by basing the assessment components on manageable groupings of outcomes and objectives.o3 to 5 tasks are sufficient for students to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in relation to course outcomes.

What might an assessment program look like?What might an assessment program look like?

Unit planningUnit planningAgriculture as a school subject has some unique challenges when developing a course plan. These constraints need to be addressed in the early planning stages, for example: oSeasonal issues with regard to cropping.oLivestock seasonal issues, for example lambing time.oAvailability of animals.oAccess to venues such as study farms or agricultural processing plants.oInvolvement in shows.oStudents on work placement for VET courses.oSchool constraints such as exam periods and reporting due dates.

Activity 1a: Activity 1a: Unit planningUnit planning

Work in small groups to identify the seasonal, agricultural, school and assessment constraints which will effect how you plan units of work.

Note these in the table on pages 6-7, Participant workbook.

To complete this planning phase, mark out when you would do sections of the course.

Activities on school farm

School based dates

Unit ideas Assessment tasks

HSCTerm

4 Plant maize trial

Soils & resourcesExpt design Task – expt.

design / analysis

HSCTerm

1

Heifer for local shows

Plant winter pastures

Half yr reports

Plant production linked to maize crop

Animal production

Report on maize trial

HSCTerm

2

Local showUnischool steers arrive

Continue animal productionProduct study – beef Product study

report

HSCTerm

3

Trial HSCAssessments to BOS

Elective Trial HSC

The Electronic content allocation tool (ECAT) is an Excel spreadsheet which allows the user to allocate content across the course and check that syllabus content is covered fully and evenly across a course plan, program or unit of work.

The purpose of this activity is to:oexplore the features, functions and applications of ECATopractice using the tool on a unit of work.

Activity 1b: Activity 1b: Electronic content allocation tool (ECAT)Electronic content allocation tool (ECAT)

These tools are on your USB.

There is one for the Preliminary course and one for the HSC course.

ECAT is also available for the Stage 5 Agricultural Technology syllabus and for Technology (Mandatory) on the Curriculum Support web site:

http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/secondary/technology/7_10/technology/prog_tool_template/index.htm

http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/secondary/technology/7_10/agriculture/prog_tool_template/index.htm

How to use ECATHow to use ECAT

• Turn to Plant production unit of work, pages 8–11 Resource booklet.

• In groups of 2–3, analyse the unit of work using the ECAT on your USB thumbdrive. Instructions and screen shots are found on pages 6–7, Resource booklet.

How to use ECATHow to use ECAT

• Using the HSC ECAT• Choose one elective.• Put a ‘y’ in all the fields of the elective for the first 2 sections,

‘innovations, ethics and current processes’ and also ‘managing processes in agricultural systems’.

How to use ECATHow to use ECAT

• Choose the tab which contains the elective.• Work with others in your group to input teaching strategies in

the ‘notes’ section.• Don’t forget to ‘save as’ to retain your work.

Morning teaMorning tea

Session 2Session 2

Teaching strategiesTeaching strategies

Analyse a research studyAnalyse a research study

In each elective students have to analyse a research study. This requirement is the same as in the previous syllabus. This has generated some challenges: oSourcing suitable research studies.oDifficulty for students to understand the technical language in the research paper.

The following activity is one way of tackling the problems students have in understanding the technical language in research papers.

Activity 2A: Unpacking technical informationActivity 2A: Unpacking technical information

The purpose of this activity is to:obecome familiar with a teaching strategy that can assist students to comprehend and use complex technical informationoenhance knowledge of experimental design. The Reciprocal teaching strategy assists students to construct meaning from text as well as a means of monitoring their reading to ensure they understood what they read. It consists of four stages:•Predict•Clarify•Question •Summarise.

Producing a summary of a research paperProducing a summary of a research paperEach group can report a summary of their work.

When your class has finished looking at a research paper using the reciprocal teaching strategy, a summary of the paper in their own words can be produced.

A pro forma for a student summary is on pages 12-13 Resource booklet.

Designing a rationDesigning a rationThe purpose of this activity is to:odesign and explain a ration to meet the nutritional requirements of a selected animal for a particular stage of production.In this activity you will use a simple spreadsheet application to formulate rations for two different animals.oDairy cowoMeat or layer chickenFrom your USB, open the spreadsheet. Follow the instructions pages 14-15, Participant workbook.To make an interesting competition, all use a 600 kg cow producing 25 litres per day. Try to produce the least cost diet.

Chicken dietChicken dietOpen the spreadsheet

Each group could use a different diet specification.

Energy source Protein source Specification

Wheat any Layer

Wheat any Broiler

Maize any Layer

Maize any Broiler

any Sunflower meal Layer

any Sunflower meal Broiler

any Soybean Layer

Practical workPractical workIt is intended that students engage in and reflect upon practical experience relevant to all aspects of the physical, chemical, biological, economic and social sciences embodied within Agriculture Stage 6. Some of this experience will be in the laboratory, some in small plot work and some on commercial farms or other components of the industry. In all cases, students should use these practical experiences to develop design, practical, management, observation, recording, interpretation and communication skills. Practical experiences may also be used to achieve coverage of the content statements not specifically related to skills. The practical experiences should occupy a minimum of 30 per cent of allocated course time.

NSW Board of Studies (2009) Agriculture Stage 6 Syllabus, p. 5.

Activity 2c: Practical workActivity 2c: Practical work

The purpose of this activity is to: obecome familiar with the practical work requirements of the syllabusoidentify mandatory practical activities in the syllabusoidentify dot points which are best covered by practical work and field trialsobe able to calculate statistical information from practical work and field trials.

Activity 2c: Practical workActivity 2c: Practical work

Open a copy of the syllabus from the resources on your USB. oIdentify the ‘mandatory’ practical activities.oIdentify dot points which lend themselves to practical activities.oWhat are the requirements for experimental design and analysis? Which practical activities are best suited for you to use to fulfil this?oDiscuss these with your group and then complete the grid on pages 17-18, Participant workbook.oEach group can report back with one practical activity which is new to them, or with an activity which fulfils a learn to statement.

Measuring significanceMeasuring significanceOne area of change in this syllabus is the addition of the concept of measuring significance in experimental data.

There is no one method mandated, and you can use any measure, the aim is for students to understand ‘significantly different’.

Some ways to measure significance are:oUsing calculators to evaluate standard error (the method is outlined in Dynamic Agriculture 3).oCalculating mean, SD and standard error using a simple spreadsheet .o Using the statistical package in Excel to measure Chi square, Student’s t or analysis of variance.

Activity 2d: Calculating mean, standard Activity 2d: Calculating mean, standard deviation and a simple test of significancedeviation and a simple test of significance

The purpose of this activity is to: ouse two different methods, the Windows 7 calculator and a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, to calculate a measure of significance (standard error), and interpret the data from a trial.

Calculator methodCalculator methodThere is a calculator in Windows 7 (the DER laptops).

You can find it using the ‘start’ button.

Then type ‘calculator’ in the search window.

Use the Internal parasite trial data, pages 21-22, Participant workbook and calculate mean, standard deviation and standard error.

ExcelExcel spreadsheet spreadsheet

To allow you to do these calculations more easily there is an Excel spreadsheet on your resource thumb drive.

Open the Excel spreadsheet.

Use the data Maize silage trial, page 24, Participant workbook in the spreadsheet to calculate standard error.

LunchLunch

Session 3Session 3

Responding to and Responding to and marking the HSCmarking the HSC

Development of examination paperDevelopment of examination paper

o Examination committee – usually made up of 4 members – both teachers and academics.

o Completely developed from the syllabus.o Examination specifications determine the format of the paper

and content of each section.o BOS officers and Exam committee determine specific content

and level of difficulty of each question.

Examination committee not only develops and writes the examination paper but also writes the Marking guidelines.

The Marking guidelines can undergo further refinement at the marking centre.

Chief examiner, Supervisor of marking (SOM) and Senior markers discuss each question and their marking guidelines.

Senior markers read and often pilot mark a range of candidates’ scripts relating them to the marking guidelines. This is to test the marking guidelines to ensure validity reliability and appropriate discrimination.

The marking guidelines can be varied with the agreement of the Chief Examiner.

Markers are randomly allocated to marking groups.

Each marking group usually marks one question.

Each marking group consists of a team of markers and a Senior marker.

Senior marker copies and annotates scripts to guide markers to how marks should be awarded.

(ii) Explain why sunflower yield decreases as the level of weeds increases.

Sunflower yield decreases as the level of weeds increase because the sunflowers are competing with the weeds for available nutrients and water which means the flowers aren’t receiving enough to grow to their maximum genetic potential.Also the weeds may shade the sunflowers which decreases the photosynthetic rate of the flower and therefore the yield.

o Each marking group discusses the question, marking guidelines and then the annotated scripts.

o Independently mark ( based on the marking guidelines) a photocopied group of scripts selected by their Senior Marker.

o Marks are compared for each script, discrepancies discussed, expected answers refined in line with candidate responses.

o Process continues until all markers are consistent in the application of the Marking guidelines and discrepancies are minimised to acceptable levels.

o Marking commences when the Senior Marker is confident that all markers are aligned and can fully apply the Marking guidelines.

Processes include;

o Check marking by the senior marker.

o Control scripts at regular intervals.

o Daily and cumulative marker statistics sheets.

o Double marking of extended response questions.

The futureThe future

The NSW Board of Studies is trialling and investigating a number of marking options:

oOn screen markingoScanning scriptsoDistributed marking

Activity 3A: Responding to complex HSC questionsActivity 3A: Responding to complex HSC questions

The purpose of this activity is to:oidentify problems students encounter in answering HSC questionsoutilise a strategy to improve student responses to HSC questions.ResourcesYou will need to refer to the following resources to work through this activity:Agriculture HSC paper (2009): USB thumb drive. Marking guidelines (2009): Resource booklet, pages 18-19. Glossary of key words: Resource booklet, pages 15-17.HSC Notes from the marking centre (2009): Resource booklet, pages 20-25.

Activity 3A: Responding to complex HSC questionsActivity 3A: Responding to complex HSC questions

Part 1 – typical problems students encounter in responding to an HSC question

oReview question 4 in the 2009 Agriculture HSC: USB thumb drive>NSW BOS materials.oReview the Marking guidelines (what’s expected) for this question page 18, Resource booklet.oWhat did students get wrong? Read the HSC Notes from the marking centre, page 22, Resource booklet.

Part 2 – examination practice activity for studentsoReview question 8, 2009 Agriculture HSC written paper. Highlight the key words. What do the key words mean? Refer to the Glossary of key words, pages 15-17, Resource booklet.oBreak down the language, what are the examiners asking for in part (a) and in part (b)? See Marking guidelines, page 19, Resource booklet.oWrite a brief plan of your answer (for a class you would then go on to do the full answer).oCheck the Marking guidelines, how many marks do you think your answer is worth?

ResourcesResources

Curriculum Support web sitesCurriculum Support web sitesCurriculum Support web siteCurriculum Support web sitewww.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/

secondary/technology/index.htm

Digital education revolution (DER) materials Digital education revolution (DER) materials http://www.curriculumsupport.education.nsw.gov.au/digital_rev/technology/design/index.htm

Teaching and learning exchange (TaLE) Teaching and learning exchange (TaLE) www.tale.edu.au • Growing an idea• Textiles Technology Resources• Architectural drawing• Design Café• Draw it

CLI: Learncasts CLI: Learncasts

http://learncast.cli.det.nsw.edu.au/learncast/default.aspx

• Sustainable farms and vineyardshttp://lrr.cli.det.nsw.edu.au/web/view/learncast/resources/10365.htm• Sustainable horticulturehttp://lrr.cli.det.nsw.edu.au/web/view/learncast/resources/10364.htm• Organic farminghttp://lrr.cli.det.nsw.edu.au/web/view/learncast/resources/10099.htm• Livestock auctionshttp://lrr.cli.det.nsw.edu.au/web/view/learncast/resources/8677.htm

BOS websiteBOS website

• Home pagewww.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au

• All my own work• Assessment resource centre (ARC)

HSC marking videoconferences for HSC marking videoconferences for students and teachersstudents and teachers

In Term 2 the Technology Unit will present 1-hour HSC marking videoconferences for students and teachers (DET schools only).

Agriculture: 17 June 2010

Contact: David ShawDavid.t.shaw@det.nsw.edu.au

EvaluationEvaluation

• Please complete evaluation forms and leave on tables with name tags.

ContactsContacts

Julie KingR/Manager TechnologyPh: 9886 7623julie.king@det.nsw.edu.au

Sally BannermanSchools Animal Welfare OfficerPh: 9886 7426Sally.bannerman@det.nsw.edu.au